On Feb. 10, 2021, researchers supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute announced the publication of a groundbreaking study which analyzed more than 53,000 whole genomes, primarily from minority populations.

The study, which appeared in the journal Nature, examined one of the largest and most diverse data sets of high-quality whole genome sequencing – a person’s complete set of DNA. The genetic data could shed new light on how heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders impact people with diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, who often are underrepresented in genetic studies.